The diagnosis and treatment of patients with cancerous tumors is an ongoing area of investigation. Medical devices for obtaining tissue samples for subsequent sampling are known in the art. For instance, a biopsy instrument now marketed under the tradename MAMMOTOME is commercially available for use in obtaining breast biopsy samples.
The following patent documents disclose various biopsy devices and are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety: U.S. Pat. No. 7,025,732 issued Apr. 11, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 6,273,862 issued Aug. 14, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,231,522 issued May 15, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,228,055 issued May 8, 2001; U.S. Pat. No. 6,120,462 issued Sep. 19, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,086,544 issued Jul. 11, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,077,230 issued Jun. 20, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,017,316 issued Jan. 25, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,007,497 issued Dec. 28, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 5,980,469 issued Nov. 9, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 5,964,716 issued Oct. 12, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 5,928,164 issued Jul. 27, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 5,775,333 issued Jul. 7, 1998; U.S. Pat. No. 5,769,086 issued Jun. 23, 1998; U.S. Pat. No. 5,649,547 issued Jul. 22, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,526,822 issued Jun. 18, 1996; US 2003/0199785 published Oct. 23, 2003; US 2003/0199754 published Oct. 23, 2003; US 2003/0199754 published Oct. 23, 2003.
Biopsy devices may include a cannula having a distal tip, such as a distal tip including a blade. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/117,964 filed May 9, 2008, incorporated in its entirety by reference herein, discloses a biopsy device needle tip. The blade of the distal tip is typically used to assist in piercing skin and/or advancing the cannula into a tissue mass, so that a tissue sample may be obtained with the biopsy device. The biopsy device may be a mounted device, such as for stereotactic applications, and include a firing mechanism for directing the distal tip into tissue. Alternatively, the biopsy device may be a handheld device, such as for use with ultrasound, in which case the physician directs the tip of the device into tissue and manipulates the device with a single hand. In either case, it is desirable to reduce the force required to penetrate tissue.
As a result, it can be desirable to test biopsy needle tip designs to determine how those needle tip designs will perform during biopsy procedures. In the past, various substances have been employed to test the effectiveness of needle tip designs. For instance, natural materials, such as pork loin, chicken breast, and turkey breast have been used to evaluate biopsy needle designs. Additionally, various synthetic materials, such as silicone, have been used to test needle tip designs.
Still, scientists and engineers continue to seek materials and methods that can be used to accurately model and test the force required to penetrate breast tissue.